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TRIAD APPROACH TO BOOSTING QUAIL AND PHEASANT POPULATIONS

Posted by Scott Roy on 25 May, 2017 | Read more →
TRIAD APPROACH TO BOOSTING QUAIL AND PHEASANT POPULATIONS

We love that feeling of waking up in the morning and listening to the calls of quail and pheasant as the sun rises up.  There is no better feeling than experiencing the glory of Gods creatures as a covey of quail flushes out of the brush or pheasant rise loudly from the fields.  However, we do want to be sure to point out that while raising your own game birds is an excellent way of boosting your wild game bird populations, to maintain those populations hinges on three very important factors.  Note:  If you aren't familiar with the WMT systems for raising Wild Game Birds, click HERE for more.  

 

1)  Improving the local birth or introduction of new birds into a property

a.  Natural population breeding 
b.  Introduction of additional birds to boost populations, breeding and introduce new proven genetics to the local populations to help boost bird size, health and vigor.  There are Wild Game Bird breeders across the US raising a variety of breeds of quail and pheasant intended for release into the wild.  Click HERE to check for local breeders near you.  We do the best we can on maintaining this list.  However, local hunting clubs may also be a great resource for identifying nearby breeders.

 

2)  Supporting those bird populations with a combination of proper natural wild habitat/cover and planted food plots

a.  Natural native habitat through maintaining good, strong cover as well as wild food density.  This means not overgrazing pastures for livestock, not mowing down all cover, and not killing off all vital habitat with herbicides.
b.  Planting food plots specifically for wild game birds that boosts the availability of preferred foods and overall nutrition while still giving them proper cover from predators.  Please refer to advice and articles from your local wildlife departments and support/advocacy organizations such as Quail Forever, Pheasant Forever, and the Wild Turkey Federation.  Click HERE for information on food plot management and available seed mixes from WMT.

 

3)  Control of predator populations that can negatively impact your work on raising and supporting bird populations

a.  Predator control is essential.  While coyote, bobcat or even raccoon populations can be controlled through varmint hunting or trapping, it is more difficult to control the impact that flying predators such as hawks, falcons and owls can have on the local bird populations.  That is where ensuring proper cover is essential to help your birds avoid detection and capture. Again, please refer to advice and articles from your local wildlife departments and support/advocacy organizations such as Quail Forever, Pheasant Forever, and the Wild Turkey Federation.

b.  Maintaining predator impact while raising your own wild game birds using the WMT Surrogator is also extremely important.  We offer several products that are tested and proven to assist in either scaring off predators or preventing entry of predators into the Surrogator while allowing exit and entry of quail.  Click HERE to learn more.